Dave Doolin, a veteran swimming and diving coach in the Bluegrass region, brings over two decades of coaching experience in his new role as first-year swimming and diving head coach at Transylvania.

"I'm excited to be joining Transylvania University and the opportunity to recruit and develop top-end swimmers," says Doolin, who accepted his new post in May 2017. "Lexington is my hometown, and my wife went to Transylvania and swam there. Our connection to this university and team goes back a long way and we are thrilled to be here."

Doolin brings an established pedigree and a deep familiarity with the Kentucky swimming community as he joins the Pioneers program. Doolin comes to Transy from nearby Tates Creek High School in Lexington where he completed a decorated seven-year career.

While with Tates Creek, Doolin also coached the Lexington Dolphins swim team, a Lexington-based non-profit club for swimmers aged 6-18 sanctioned by USA Swimming. Past swimmers with the Dolphins have gone on to compete at regional and national levels, including USA Junior Nationals, USA Nationals, and Olympic Trials. Doolin has served in a coaching capacity with the Dolphins since 1999.

Doolin's resume illustrates a pattern of developing swimmers to their highest potential, a blueprint he aspires to replicate at Transylvania. "Each swimmer is an individual, and I'm going to give every individual what they need to succeed, and that will be different for everybody," Doolin describes as one of his core philosophies. "I consider myself a swimmer's coach and I want to get the best out of each of them."

Swimmers who have trained under Doolin have competed at the 2000, 2008, and 2012 US Olympic trials.

Prior to his tenure with Tates Creek High School, Doolin was the head swimming coach at Lexington's Paul Laurence Dunbar High School from 2002-2007.

As a high school swimming coach, Doolin's efforts have earned him the Kentucky Swimming Coach of the Year award in 2001, the Kentucky State High School Girls Coach of the Year award in 2017, the Region 8 Girls Coach of the Year in 2017 and 2016, the Region 8 Boys Coach of the Year in 2016, and the State High School Boys Coach of the Year in 2005. Since 2001, Doolin has won seven Kentucky regional coach of the year awards.

Doolin's wide range of involvement with swimming in the state of the Kentucky entails serving on the Kentucky Swimming Board of Directors since 2001. As part of the board, Doolin has worked in an assortment of roles, including program operations, coaches' representative, program development, and as a Senior Vice-Chair from 2010 until 2016. At the conclusion of his tenure as Vice-Chair, Doolin transitioned into another tour of duty as a coaches' representative.

Doolin holds memberships with USA Swimming, the American Swimming Coaches Association, and the National Interscholastic Swim Coach Association.

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